1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to coffee makers, and particularly to a two-piece electric coffee maker having a temperature sensor that assists in monitoring the coffee in the coffee container.
2. Description of the Related Art
Coffee is tremendously popular, and a million cups of coffee are consumed per day. While much has been done to improve the first brewing of coffee, the problem of preserving the flavor of coffee over an extended time after brewing has not been satisfactorily addressed. The most frequent complaints are that the coffee is too hot or too cold, that it develops a “burnt” taste over time, or that desirable flavor notes are lost. The cause of this burnt taste results from overheating or prolonged heating.
In restaurants and cafes, coffee is often brewed into decanters, such as glass coffee pots, which are placed on hot plates to keep the coffee warm. Coffee typically is brewed at a temperature near 200° F./93° C., and kept warm at a temperature near 180° F./82° C. At these high temperatures, coffee breaks down over time and becomes bitter and distasteful to the consumer. Therefore, old coffee is periodically thrown out and replaced with freshly brewed coffee. However, the hectic pace in a restaurant or cafe can cause the wait staff to forget how long a given pot of coffee has been on the hot plate.
As coffee increases in demand and consumption, consumers have also increased demand for fresher, better tasting coffee. One common problem arising in modern coffee machines is the need to signal the user of the staleness or bitterness of the coffee due to overheating or prolonged heating. The longer the time coffee is left warming, the worse the degradation. In addition to the period of time the coffee is warming, the longer the time coffee is brewed at a high temperature, the worse the degradation of the coffee.
When coffee is left warming without a means to monitor, there can be a waste of energy and a waste of coffee product. The waste of coffee product can lead to an increase of coffee supply costs. It is imperative for restaurants, cafes, and home coffee machines to provide quality controls to serve customers and users the best and freshest brewed coffee as much as possible.
Thus, a two-piece electric coffee maker solving the aforementioned problems is desired.